Keep your Eyes on Jesus; not on your belly button!
Brendan Mc Crossan
Keep your eyes on Jesus not on your belly button.
Many times in our lives we face great challenges and depending on our attitude and where our eyes are fixed, will bring the victory or defeat.
One thing I really want to emphasize in this book is where we should be looking and to remember that from before time began, God had already made provision for your need and situation.
Long ago; even before he made the world, God choose us to be his very own through what Christ would do for us he decided then to make you holy in his eyes without a single fault, we who stand before him covered with his love.-Ephesians 1-4
I have used this scripture many times before in my books in the view of how God sees us as holy people who belong to him through Jesus Christ. But this time I want you to look at this scripture from another angle; Long ago even before he made the world; God chose us to be his very own!
If God chose you from before he even made the world does it then not stand to reason that he would make provision for your every need, no matter what they are?
Philippians -4- 19- and it is he who will supply all your needs from his riches in glory, because of what Christ Jesus has done for us.
This scripture is normally associated with financial blessings, but it just does not say that alone, it says “all” your needs, whether they be financial or physical or material or spiritual, healing or deliverance or circumstances.
My need at this moment in time is for help in overlooking the hurts that have been caused to me by the pastors of my church; because they didn’t like the way I preached a message from God; I knew the message was from God by the peace of heart I felt as I spoke it and afterwards the peace was still upon me. The message was a message of correction for the people in the church and where I was conducting ahealing service for them. People walked out becausethey didn’t like what I said, and I was ok with that, because people didn’t like what Jesus had to say either. They said I was too forceful, I didn’t present it right, the pastors agreed with the message, but didn’t like the way I presented it. How do you present a message like John the Baptist presented to the scribes and Pharisees, “you brood of vipers?” how can you turn that into a nice little soft spoken message. Example; you bad boys, you should behave yourselves and change your ways! No that is not how John the Baptist spoke to them he spoke roughly or roared at them, he didn’t use a nice quiet little mild voice, these men where putting burdens on God’s people through their false laws which they themselves didn’t keep.
Matthew -3-7- but when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to be baptized he denounced them. “You sons of snakes!” he warned. Who said that you could escape the coming wrath of God?
I was hurt when they took from me the healing ministry and the pastor decided to do the healing services himself from now on. I am human as well as spiritual and I allowed my feelings to be hurt, and I sat feeling rejected, until Jesus came and spent the morning of my birthday with me, letting me know he was there with me personally. I had never experienced Jesus presence in such a way before. I sat in my back yard ministering to him by song and praise, then he came to me personally and sat with me and I could feel his majestic presence; and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I had delivered his message to those people who stayed and to those who walked out, and that he was comforting my feelings. You see as I was delivering the Lords message the Holy Spirit stopped me and spoke to me and said; “If you go on with this message you will have the healing ministry taken off you, would you be prepared to go on?” If you do you will be shooting yourself in the foot!
I thought about it for one moment knowing as I was preparing to speak again, that they would not like what the lord told me to say, and that some would walk out and that the pastors would remove me from the healing ministry; {I subjected myself to the pastor when I joined this church, so I would be in obedience to him in all things.} As I continued on with the lord’s message I even prophesied that the pastor would remove me from this ministry, he didn’t even hear me say that, his ears were closed in shock because I told the people they needed to repent. By the way I am not a quiet soft spoken person, I don’t need a microphone in a church for people to hear me I have a loud voice, and the lord knows what I am like and the sound of my voice, and he gave me this message to give to those people, and I did so. He could have given this message to those people through the pastor or someone else and I found out later that he had been trying to get through to them for twelve years with no success through the pastors and elders.
Afterwards he removed me from this ministry and inserted himself into it.
Now Jesus was comforting me and encouraging me to focus on him and what he wanted me to do; reminding me he was rejected by the spiritual leaders too. Now I count it worth everything to suffer like my master suffered.
Maybe your situation is different from mine, but the same lord knew and knows about it from even before you were born. Now God wants us to “focus on him” not our need; as for me God is bigger than the pastors and will do as he wants with me later on anyway, and I now know that, but my feelings got in there and in your situation also, feelings have got in there; and the feelings whether they are feelings of rejection or feelings of fear of not having enough, they are your feelings never the less, and you, like I, have to set aside our feelings and focus on the God who made us from before time began to fulfill his will in us his very own children. If God made us and called us his children, then it stands to reason that he is well able to take care of our needs whatever they may be.
Satan tries to get our attention on to him and his lies by telling us that God doesn’t care or even notice us, as he is busy taking care of his special chosen saints and wonderful ministers like those we see on God TV and God TV channels. He tries to get us all focused on him indirectly by focusing on the problems we face instead of the solutions that are in Christ Jesus.
Stop gazing at your belly button, looking down at Satan!
Focusing on the problems will never solve them, but focusing on Jesus and praising him will solve every problem because praise means you are trusting God anyway, no matter what your circumstances are. Your eyes are lifted up and are not gazing down at your belly button. When you gaze at your belly button you bow the head to Satan and you give him the glory; but when you lift your gaze to the heavens and look upwards you are looking at he who supplies your every need.
We need to remember to keep our eyes on Jesus our leader and instructor, he is the one who will supply our present need no matter how big that need is, that need is nothing to Jesus, he created the universe with the word of his mouth, so he can create a solution to your basic need no matter how gigantic it may seem to be.
Remember something when praying for a healing; Cancer or some incurable disease is no different to Jesus than a headache is, it just seems too big for us.
He God loves us and never created sickness or disease that was created by Satan the Devil, God created us human beings with divine health in us and Satan lies to us or puts sickness and disease on us and then says its God’s will for you to rot away with leprosy or rot away with cancer or Aids. Those were not made by God. When God created the earth everything was good.
Genesis -1-31-then God looked over everything he had made and it was excellent in every way.
There was no sickness or disease or disasters created into God perfect world that came later because Adam and Eve betrayed God and disobeyed him and thereby gave dominion over to Satan the Devil, who then changed the things that God made to be objects of sickness and disasters, under his control.
Did you know that Satan never created anything, either in heaven as the most beautiful angel there ever was, or as the Devil when he rebelled against God and was cast down onto the earth? No he distorted what God made, and corrupted things God created. Flies are a nuisance and carry diseases and Satan is called by some, “The lord of the flies.” But he never created an actual fly, he turned this creature into a thing that carries disease and sickness and he turned the things we do not see into virus and disease. On earth he had the power to corrupt things but never the power to create. God looked and saw everything was excellent in every way, everything was created for its own purpose, and that purpose was originally to serve man. To be there for mans use, again refer to Genesis 1-26 then God said let us {the Holy Trinity} makea man someonelikeourselves, to bemasterof all lifeupon theearth and in theskies and in the seas.
God intended you and I to be master of all life, notice that it said, “all life” not some life or a few life things, but all life. God intended us to be in control of this planet, not Satan to be in control; that is why he sent Jesus to take back everything Adam and Eve gave to Satan the Devil, authority in this earth. Praise God it has now been restored to us but Satan still tries to get us to believe his lies and get us belly button gazing and looking down at him, believing what lies he tells us, and it is in reading the word of truth the bible; that brings enlightenment to our spirits. Sickness is not from God therefore he desires to heal it. Disease is not from God therefore he desires to heal us from them.
Poverty is not from God therefore he will supply all our needs through Christ Jesus. Heartache and pain is not from God therefore he desires to heal you. Rejection is not from God therefore he will heal that rejection as he felt it also.
Looking down glorifies Satan. Looking up glorifies God your heavenly father, stop belly button gazing and begin star gazing looking up past those stars and looking at the eyes of our father in heaven.
A person who suffers from depression walks around with their head bent down, they have rounded shoulders.
Think of someone you know who suffers from depression and think of how their body is. Is it upright shoulders back head upright, or is it down shoulders rounded and head looking down. Scripture says in the Psalms; theirs was no downcast look of rejection. Scripture alone tells you that the depressed person looks downwards and the Happy person looks upright at God in heaven.
Psalm-119-25 I am completely discouraged, I lie in the dust. Look at his attitude here he is laying in the dust, his countenance is down, his eyes are focused downwards.
Scripture says in Psalms 18-36 you have made wide steps beneath my feet so that I may never slip. Isn’t it awesome that when we step out to do something for God he makes those steps wide so we don’t stumble or slip or fall?
Since future victory is sure That is where you and I should have our eyes fixed, on the future victory that Jesus won for us and not on the present problems.
1-Corinthians-15-58-So, my dear brothers, since future victory is sure, be strong and steady, always abounding in the lords work, for you know that nothing you do for the lord is ever wasted, as it would be if there were no resurrection.
Look at the boldness displayed in this scripture, since future victory is sure, be strong and steady, always abounding in the lords work. Are you working for God? You are if you’re saved, then this scripture applies to you. Declare out of your mouth future victory is already mine, I can’t be defeated because I have already won the battle in my mind, I fight not against Satan or demons or spirits but I declare the victory over them, as they struggle to win the battle for my feelings and emotions in my mind. My mind is the present day battlefield, but the battle has already been decided by Jesus, he defeated Satan and every spirit and demonic forces; my job is to declare the victory that my savior won for me even in this present war I am in!
Psalm-56-9 the very day I call for help the tide of battle turns. My enemies flee! This one thing I know; God is for me!
My goodness! God is for me, not against me, as Satan may have told you. So if God is for me then who can withstand God.
Psalm-54-4- but God is my helper. He is a friend of mine! He will cause the evil deeds of my enemies to boomerang upon them. Do as you promised and put an end to these wicked men, O God.
God declares in his word that he is for me and also he is my friend, and a friend that can see the beginning and the end in every situation, he sees when the enemy planned his attack and what methods he would use and he knew ever vile plot and knew how to bring his victory into this situation for you and I.
What will I now do then to demonstrate to God I believe him not the Devil!
Psalm-60-3-How I praise you! I will bless you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer, at last I shall be fully satisfied; I will praise you with great Joy.
The psalm writer was saying in the previous verses that he was searching for God, and how he was longing to find him, and then it dawned on him that the way to find God was to begin to praise him. To call out loudly; “Glory God glory and honor and praise to your name.” It’s like calling out to a friend on a mountain where you two are climbing; you call out loudly, where are you my friend? And that friend hears your voice and answers, here I am over here, he knows your voice and you know his so you know exactly where your friend is on that mountain.
When you begin to praise God he answers by saying; behold I am with you always, my friend, didn’t I say I would never leave you; he hears your praise above the clamor of everything and comes to see how you are, and reassures you that he is there for you. Praise above everything brings God into the situation; he looks to see who is praising him and sees that it is his friend and comes to visit with you.
An example of how God hears you above everyone else; your at a meeting and everyone is mingling and talking loudly, and you begin to talk about your pastor telling loudly to everyone listening, how marvelous he is, what a wonderful fellow he is and how God uses him for amazing miracles. And the pastor hears his name being mentioned above the loudness of the crowd zeros in on who is talking about him, its human instinct, if we hear our name mentioned we stop doing what we are doing and begin to listen, to hear what’s being said about us. God hears his name being praised and stops what he is doing and begins to listen and as he is continually being praised he looks to see where the praise is coming from, and then he sees you; as he looks at you he also sees the situation your in and hears you praising him anyway, he is so pleased that you believed him above everything that comes against you, that he chases the enemy with his presence or simply gives you the right thing to do or say, to bring that victory into being.
Where should our eyes be? They should be firmly fixed on God and on Jesus and his Holy Spirit, not on our situation or circumstances. Having our eyes firmly fixed on our situation or circumstance will never bring about change or victory, but having them forcefully and deliberately, and steady never looking either left or right but focused right on Jesus will bring peace of mind and heart, and the solution and the victory promised.
Psalm-18-28 you have turned on my light! The lord my God has made my darkness turn to light.
Wow! Is there any dark times in your life, are you going through a dark time at this present moment? Then remember that the lord your God has turned on the light for you, look up at the light and stop looking into the darkness, the situation. Looking into the darkness brings with it defeat because that is where Satan dwells, in the darkness, God dwells in the light and that is where we need to keep our eyes fixed.
God turns everything to good for those who love him and do his will.
Romans-8-28- and we know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into his plans.
{Another translations says}
Romans-8-28-God turns everything to good for those who love him and do his will. Whatever your situation is give it to Jesus let him turn it to good for you. When you let go of a situation and give control over it to Jesus then assumes responsibility for that situation and he is able to bring from it good for his glory, and that is what we live for as Christians to bring God glory in every circumstance. Instead of having a circumstance have a Jesus stance; adopt a position of praise, hands up head up eyes up and begin to praise God for taking this situation in his hands.
Did you note in that scripture that it says God turns everything to Good? Not some things or a few things but “everything” to good for those who love him and are doing his will. Doing his will believes in and on him. Scripture says the will of God is this; believe in his Son Jesus; that is doing the will of God believing in Jesus. When are we going to learn to trust God and Jesus and his Holy Spirit who know everything there is to know about us; God said in Jerimiah, I know the plans I have for you they are plans for good to give you a future and a hope. From before time began God knew every circumstance you would ever have to face, and had that built into his plans for good for you, Satan on the other hand knows just a little of what God is planning to do with you; just a little bit, he can try and guess when he sees you and thinks they don’t know the plans of God for them, so I will fool them into thinking that I am almighty, that I am someone to be feared, to hold in awe and respect, and I rule the situation your in; and he tries to get us to accept those lies which could affect the plans that God had for you.
Ignorance of God’s word is no excuse for a born again believer, you have everything written down for you in plain sight, every detail of your salvation, every detail of your victories, every high place you stand and in whom you share eternal life with; through him, with him, and in him. You are in Jesus, and the father wants you to glorify him by knowing that you are in Jesus and Jesus in you cannot be defeated in any circumstance or situation, no matter how bad those situation or circumstances are, you are victorious through and in Christ Jesus, always! Keep your eyes on Jesus in you and in heaven, be aware that the Holy Trinity lives in you, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit! Who can defeat those three, who can cause them to fear in a situation? And they live in complete harmony with and in you the believer.
Who can stand against us who knows that Jesus the deliver is inside us? What circumstance can withstand God in You? What power that comes against you can withstand the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells inside you?
Praise releases that power of God in your situation or circumstance, and praise means your eyes are turned upward knowing you have the victory anyway, that Satan is defeated in your family in your financial, in your healing, in you spiritual life. You are more than a conquer through Christ Jesus. You that’s talking about you who reads this, you are “more” that’s over and above, more than a conquer through Christ Jesus who lives and remains in you and in your situation and circumstances. Who will you believe, Satan the Devil, or God? Your answer dictates your defeat or victory.
Learn to look at things through the eyes of Jesus. Does Jesus get afraid when confronted by evil? Does Jesus think the situation is too large for him? Is any thing impossible to Jesus including your circumstances?
Let this mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus;
Phillipians-2-5- let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.
John -17-27- my prayer for all of you is that they will be of one heart and mind, just as you and I are Father; that just as you are in me and I am in you so they will be in us. And the world will believe you sent me, and I have given them, the glory you gave me, the gloriousunityofbeing one,justasweare.Iinthemandyouinme,allarebeingperfected into one.
Do you understand the significance that God reveals here in his word, that you are in Christ Jesus and he is in you along with the Father and the Holy Spirit, and that you have a portion of the mind of Jesus in you.
We have two choices to make when making decisions in terrible circumstances; do we think with our natural mind or do we put on the mind of Christ and think as he does. God says in this scripture, “let” “this mind be in you.” he says to let this mind be in you, let his mind be in you especially when you face trying circumstances, when your facing the most horrible things in your life, when your looking at the impossible, let this mind be in you. This mind, the mind of Jesus is the mind that sees the victory, not the defeat, and you were given this mind to use, just like you were given every spiritual gift and power when you received the Holy Spirit-
1 Corinthians -1-6- now you have every spiritual gift and power for doing the will of God.
It is up to you not Jesus or God or the Holy Spirit to make you do or say something, it is a decision by you when faced with an impossible situation with a possible miracle working God. Thinking with the mind of Jesus and seeing through the eyes of Jesus is what we need to do every day of our life whether things are going good or bad, it makes no difference; you still need the mind of Jesus. When God says let this mind be in you; he meant that this mind of Jesus should be continually in you in every day life, and if you think like Jesus thinks every
day in normal circumstances, then when bad things happen, you will automatically think like Jesus in those bad situations and you will think victory not disaster.
How does Jesus think?
What does the mind of Jesus think? Well the first thing the mind of Jesus thinks is, he is a Son of God, and that Almighty God is his Father.
But wait a minute does the bible not tell us that we are God’s Sons and daughters of equal standing with Jesus!
Romans -8-39- from the very beginning God decided that those who came to him should become like his Son.
This scripture tells you and me that from the beginning of time God decided, no one else but God decided to make you and I like his Son Jesus. The meaning of the word “like” is to of equal standing, to be the same as, resemble something. Romans-8-15 and we should not be like cringing fearful slaves, but we should behave like God’s very own children, adopted into the bosom of his family, and calling to him, “Father, Father.”
We are supposed to call “Almighty God, Father!”
This is how Jesus thinks; this is what we should think also because God tells us to call him Father.
The second thing Jesus thinks is he is royalty, he is a king and not only a king but a king of kings.
We too were made kings by God and Jesus is the king of kings he is over and equal to us at the same time.
Revelation-1-6-he has gathered us into his kingdom and made us kings and priests of God our father. {Amplified bible}
Revelation-5-10 you have gathered them into a kingdom and made them kings and priests. {Amplified bible}
Jesus thinks as a king thinks, we also need to begin thinking as a king thinks after all this is what God done for us his children from before we were even born or I should say before the beginning of time itself.
Jesus does not think of himself as lowly or useless or of no value, he knows his value to his Father, we also need to know our value to our Father. Jesus became lowly taking the form of a slave, he didn’t remain lowly he rose to his position as a king and victorious over all evil.
Do you think as a king thinks? Do I think as a king thinks? Probably not, but I am slowly getting there as I understand more and more of God’s word and what he actually done for me;
the more I read God’s word on this subject the more I am astounded by the revelations that are being revealed to me, and the more I am beginning to see myself from God’s eyes.
Does Jesus think poverty? No he is a king with all the wealth of a king. Do we think poverty? Yes with a poverty mentality, believing from the first off that we are being humble in our poverty, after all Jesus was born in a stable to show us that we must think humility, poor, is good, God’s son was born in a stable, to show us the attitude we should have towards finances.
Rubbish Jesus was born in a stable because there was no room at the inns. To use a modern day term an Inn was a hotel, an Inn was a place were people paid money to stay in, Joseph tried every Inn and place but finding no place because they were already booked up, then he had to go to a stable because Mary was in labor. You do not try and get a room in an Inn or hotel unless you have money would you? But the devil has deceived people into thinking it was God’s plan to have Jesus born poor, so that we could follow his example. Read my book on “Prosperity is the plan of God for you.”
PSALM-35-27- LET THE LORD BE MAGNIFIED, WHO TAKES PLEASURE IN THE “PROSPERITYOFHISSERVANT.
Prosperity for his children makes God happy it gives him pleasure. So then the truth is Jesus wasn’t poor neither were his parents, neither is his heavenly Father who owns the universes. Your Father owns the universes also he is the same father that Jesus has.
Would Jesus think defeat or despair? No for he defeated the Devil by going into hell and taking all his power off of him and parading him before all of heaven stripped naked for you and me.
Should I think defeat or despair? No! I am more than a conquer through Christ Jesus.
Romans -8-37- But despite all this, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ Jesus.
1-John-4-4- for greater is he that is in me than he that is in the world.
This should be my thinking in every demonic situation when Satan comes with desperate situations and circumstances and tries to get us to accept them.
You know I could go on and on giving you scripture after scripture telling you how Jesus thought, but you really need to do that for your self and get those scripture down into your spirit and then speak like Jesus and think like Jesus, in every situation including the greatest times you will ever have, Jesus glorified the Father and that is what we should be doing also, glorifying our heavenly Father.
Just ask yourself in what ever situation you may find yourself in: “what would Jesus think? And respond accordingly yourself, and do what Jesus would have done; he is the example we must follow. In this way you can never be defeated by Satan and you will have your eyes fixed on heavenly things.
Stop looking at your belly button and think as Jesus thinks, look up like he looked at his heavenly father and declare the victory like he declared the victory. Praise God no matter what the circumstances praise raises your mind and spirit upward and the father sends his answers downwards to you. Receive them and give him glory. Keep your eyes on Jesus and not on your belly button!